W.Va. voters face plenty of choices

Voters in the Eastern Panhandle will head to the polls today to cast ballots in a long list of races for U.S. Congress, West Virginia House of Delegates and county commissions.

Polls are open today from 6:30 a.m. to 7:30 p.m.

Voters also will decide the fate of three proposed tax levies.

In Berkeley County, residents will vote on a police levy that would add more deputies to the Berkeley County Sheriff's Department, and a school levy.

In Jefferson County, voters will decide whether to renew an excess levy for schools that has been in effect since 1946.

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The hard-fought race between U.S. Rep. Shelley Moore Capito and Democrat Jim Humphreys should culminate today when voters decide who will represent them for the next two years in the 2nd Congressional district.

Election officials have been busy handling absentee ballots cast through the No Excuse Voting Program and the regular absentee ballots accepted through the mail.

Close to 600 people have voted through absentee ballots in Jefferson County, Jefferson County Clerk John Ott said Monday.

Ott said voters were lined up at his office when it opened Monday morning to cast absentee ballots.

Voting was allowed until 1 p.m. Monday under the No Excuse Voting Program.

Ott said today's turnout could be between 40 percent and 50 percent of registered voters.

Ott said he believes the excess school levy in Jefferson County and the statewide Amendment 1 proposal - which would create a system to fund new development through bonds, not new taxes - will generate interest among voters.

In the Berkeley County Commission race, Republican Steve Teufel will face Democrat Butch Pennington for an at-large seat.

In the Jefferson County Commission races, Republican Rusty Morgan will face Democrat G. Warren Mickey for the Kabletown district seat and Democrat Greg Lance is running against Republican Greg Corliss for the Harpers Ferry district seat.

There are a number of House of Delegates races to be decided today.

Del. Charles Trump, R-Morgan, Democrat Vicky Law and Barbara Tutor of the Mountain Party will vie for the 51st District seat.

Republican Craig Blair and Democrat Craig Shibley are running for the 52nd district seat and Republican Walter Duke and Democrat Dale Buck are vying for the 54th District seat.

Republican David Ebbitt and Del. John Doyle, D-Jefferson, are running for the 57th District seat and Del. Dale Manuel, D-Jefferson, is defending his 58th district seat against Republican Fred Blackmer.

Republican Jim Whitacre is facing Democrat Bob Tabb for the 56th District seat and Mountain Party candidate Vince George is running against Del. John Overington, R-Berkeley, for the 55th District seat.